Starry Skies & Moonlit Hikes
by Essessency
Summary: It's the summer before they would go on their own separate journeys, so our favorite foursome decides to go camping. Little do they know how important this trip really is. It's not all just hiking, swimming and stargazing. Perhaps they will find themselves along the way. Set after Musicals and Moving On/Before the Finale. Auslly. Slight Trez. Four shot.
1. Chapter 1: Traveling & Tiffs

"Are you sure we have everything?" Ally fretted, pacing beside Austin's car.

He chuckled at her worried demeanor. "Calm down Ally. We've gone over the list five times. I think we'll be fine."

"But maybe we should check it one more time." She suggested. "Just to be sure."

He groaned and pulled out the list, skimming over it and mumbling incoherently. "Tents, sleeping bags, bugspray, snacks, bathing suits, sunscreen, pillows, matches, jackets, first aid kit… wait…. Why is bear repellant on here?" He held up the list.

"We're going camping." Ally answered as a matter of factly. "You can never be too sure."

He gave her a strange look and laughed as they continued packing. No less than five minutes later, Trish and Dez joined them. Dez was dressed in his old boy scout uniform, which was a bit small on him now. Trish wore a purple summer dress with flip flops and sunglasses.

"What are you guys wearing?" Ally asked, skimming over their fashion choices. "Nevermind Dez, Trish, what are _you_ wearing?"

She looked over the lenses of her gaudy sunglasses. "We're heading to North Carolina, aren't we?"

"Yeah, but-"

"And that means beautiful beaches and fabulous shopping malls!" Trish interrupted. "I can't wait to chill and relax in the great outdoors!"

Austin and Ally looked at each other and shook their heads. They wouldn't tell Trish that 'the great outdoors' meant they were going camping in the Appalachians, and they weren't going anywhere near the shore. They were sure that Dez knew where they were going.

They had just graduated a month ago from Marino High. Trish would be staying in Miami, Austin would be off on tour, Dez would be moving to L.A., and Ally was going to Harvard. They would be going their separate ways soon, and it would be hard for all of them. Therefore, they wanted one last vacation all together before they would be separated. Austin and Ally arranged a camping trip in North Carolina, because they both have always loved the outdoors and wanted to experience something new. Also, they were famous and they didn't want to go somewhere overly populated. They told Trish and Dez about their idea and they agreed. Well, Dez agreed. Trish mumbled a 'whatever', and turned her attention toward her phone. She would find out soon enough.

After they jammed everything into Austin's car, they hit the road. It would be a good twelve hours until they reached Charlotte, and that counted traffic. They decided to take shifts driving, because they didn't want Austin to be exhausted. The only person Austin really trusted with his car was Ally, not because she was his girlfriend or because she taught him how to drive.

It was because Trish had crashed three cars within six months and nobody trusted Dez to drive.

Austin got on the highway, starting to drive out of the city limits. Everyone was excited and ready for adventure. Ally put on the radio and starting singing along. Soon, Austin joined, then Trish, and then Dez. The car was loud, which was ironic, because the song they were singing was titled "Loud".

 _C'mon get loud, loud, let it out._

 _Shout it out from the rooftops,_

 _C'mon get loud, loud, till they shut us down_

Austin sang loudly, and Ally harmonized.

 _C'mon get loud, loud, let it out._

 _Show me everything that you got,_

 _C'mon get loud, loud, I need you now._

Dez started to lipsync, which was a lot funnier than it should've been. Ally started tearing up from laughing so hard while Trish and Austin continued singing 'na na na'.

By the time the song was over, they were on the road that would lead them to North Carolina. They were pumped up with adrenaline.

"Woo," Ally took a deep breath and looked at her boyfriend. "You're really good at singing that song. You sound _exactly_ like Ross Lynch."

"Really?" Austin replied. "You think? I bet he isn't as good looking as me, though." He winked at Ally, who rolled her eyes and playfully shoved him. He had a big ego.

They spent the next three hours looking at clouds (with the exception of Austin), listening to the radio, and playing the license plate game. They sunroof was open, the windows were down, and the wind blew past them, making them feel free. It was now seven, and they decided to stop at a waffle house. Only a half an hour until they would be in Georgia.

Ally, who was sitting in the passenger's seat, fell asleep for two hours. She would take Austin's shift afterwards and drive the rest of the night, so she wanted to be rested. Austin offered that they could stay in a hotel and continue in the morning, but Ally didn't want to waste another minute.

"Ugh…" Trish groaned as she stepped in the parking lot. "We were on the road for like, four hours… My feet are killing me."

"Speak for yourself." Dez commented as he got out. "At least you're short, I'm tall and my legs were squished. I don't want to be constricted. I want to be free, like a bird…" He did his bird movement and glared at Trish.

Trish huffed and turned to Austin, who was making sure they had everything. "Austin, can I _please_ sit in the front next time? I don't want to sit next to Dez."

"Fine, fine, just go inside and get us a seat." He begged, tired of their fighting. Trish and Dez complied and went into the waffle house to get a seat. Austin walked over to the passenger's side, where Ally was still sleeping soundly. He hated having to wake her, she was so adorakable in the way that she was curled up, like a sleeping kitten.

He opened the door and poked her side. "Ally, we're stopping for dinner… or breakfast… or brinner… whatever you call it."

Ally hardly moved, clearly sound asleep.

" _Ally_ …" He spoke a little louder. "You have one more chance. C'mon," He nudged her. "Get up."

She mumbled something and turned to face away from him.

He sighed. "Okay, you leave me no choice…" His face twisted into a mischievous grin as he moved his hands to her stomach, tickling her mercilessly, causing her to jolt awake.

"Austin!" She scolded between deep breaths and giggles, "S-stop! I'm awake!"

He stopped and she glared at him, he raised his hands in defense. "I warned ya."

 **x.x**

They sat inside a small booth in the waffle house, right in the corner. Ally loved sitting in the corner. She liked having her own space, even though it wasn't too spacious because her best friend was painting her nails, on the table, and her boyfriend was playing footsie with her underneath the table.

"I am starving!" Dez called out as they began skimming through the menu. "Do you think they have chicken pot pie here?!" His face turned hopeful.

"No, you doof! It's a waffle house!"

Austin's smile dropped. "So they don't have pancakes here?"

Trish turned to Austin. "No, you other doof! It's a _waffle_ house!"

Ally sighed. "Will you guys please stop fighting… this vacation is supposed to be about bonding time. And Trish, please put away the nail polish… the smell is giving me a headache."

Trish rolled her eyes and put away the polish, letting her other hand dry.

"Hi y'all," A short haired, middle aged, blonde waitress came up to the foursome. "My name is Janice, I'll be your server. Is there anything I can get y'all?"

"A cup of ice water would be great." Ally smiled.

"Milk please!" Austin answered.

"I'll have an iced tea." Trish said.

Dez turned to the waitress. "Do you guys have any coconut milk or organic orange juice with a fresh squeezed pineapple and marmalade?"

The waitress looked at him. "Son, this is a waffle house."

Dez huffed. "Fine. I'll have a lemonade."

The lady jotted everything on her notepad and walked back behind the counter.

Ally looked at her phone. "It's almost seven thirty?! It was just four…"

"Yeah." Dez said. "Four hours ago. You slept forever. No one was there to protect me from Trish's abuse…" Trish shot him a death glare and Dez shifted so close to Austin, that he was almost on his lap. "Help me…" He whispered and clung onto his best friend.

"Austin, you can sit next to him the rest of the way." Ally said. "I can't stand their fighting anymore."

Austin laughed and muttered. "Wait till Trish finds out that they are sharing a tent…"

Trish looked up. "What was that?"

Austin's eyes widened and he was saved by the waitress, who came to deliver their drinks. "Here ya go." She spoke in a thick accent as she set down the drinks. "And what can I get ya to eat."

"Do you guys have pancakes?" Austin looked at the menu several times, but assumed they just misspelled 'waffles'.

"Sorry darling, this is a waffle house."

Austin pouted and put down the menu. "Awe… shoulda gone to IHOP…"

"Ignore him." Trish said. "I'll have the bacon egg and cheese Texas melt."

Dez smiled. "And I will have the chocolate chip waffles!"

Austin sighed, deciding to try something new. "I'll have the same."

"And I'll have a Ham & Cheese omelette with a side on grits." Ally smiled and handed the menus to the waitress. "Ooh! And a small cup of coffee!"

The waitress nodded and grabbed the menus. "Okay, we'll have that out soon."

"A coffee?" Austin repeated. "You'll be up all night!"

"That's the point." She said. "I'm driving, remember?"

Austin paused. "Oh yeah…."

 **x.x**

After nearly two hours of eating and conversing, the four best friends were finally ready to head on the road. Austin had tried the chocolate chip waffles and actually did enjoy them, though he did miss his pancakes.

Dez stretched out. "I can't believe we have another seven hours. I think I'm going to sleep."

Trish mumbled. "Good, whatever gets you to shut up."

They all piled into the car and buckled up. Ally set up the GPS and Trish got comfortable with a pillow. Austin and Dez sat in the back, playing rock paper scissors.

After nearly two hours on the road, they were all asleep, except Ally of course. She drove in the middle of Georgia and hummed to herself. She couldn't help but think of the future… of her and Austin's future.

The road was empty, with only three cars within miles of each other. Ally took the opportunity to glance back at her boyfriend, who was sitting diagonally from her. He was passed out, his head rested against Dez's head and Ally couldn't help but smile at the cuteness of their friendship.

She would be going to Harvard… so far away from him, for four years. They didn't talk about it often, they were too scared to. They all saw how Trish's long term relationship with Jace worked out, and they were scared that something similar would happen to them. They were best friends. Their friendship would always come first, no matter what the nature of their relationship was.

Ally didn't even know how long her mind was debating this, but it must have been awhile, because soon enough, it was midnight, and they were in South Carolina.

"Hey…"

Ally slightly flinched at the voice, having had complete silence for the last few hours. Austin leaned over toward Ally and reached over to kiss her cheek.

She smiled. "Hey.. we are in South Carolina now."

His eyes widened. "There's a _South_ Carolina?!"

She rolled her eyes and handed him the map.

"Huh…" He said. "You learn something new everyday."

Dez started to wake up. "Hmmm.. that was a good nap. Are we there yet?"

"Not yet, Dez." Ally answered. "We still have a couple more hours."

"Okay." He replied. Five minutes had passed. "Are we there yet?"

Austin and Ally both groaned, waiting for the moment when they would finally arrive.

 **x.x**

After nearly two hours of Dez's endless chatter and Trish's endless complaining, they finally arrived. Tall woods bordered both sides of the narrow road as they drove deeper into the mountains, unable to see the horizon. Dez started bouncing up and down in his seat.

Ally smiled. "Awe! Are you excited too, Dez?"

Dez shook his head, his lips in a tight line. "Nope, I just really gotta pee..."

Austin sighed. "Don't worry, we are almost there."

Trish looked around. "Are you sure? All I see are woods…"

Ally chuckled nervously. "Yeah, about that…"

Trish looked at Ally, waiting for her to explain herself, but everything was self explanatory as Ally pulled into a drive called "Carolina Campgrounds".

"Surprise!" Dez grinned. "You have no idea how hard it was to keep this secret from you… You thought we were going to the beach, but nope! We are here to enjoy ourselves in the great outdoors!"

"WHAT?!" Trish boomed angrily, she turned to Ally. "Why didn't you tell me?!"

Ally cringed and parked the car. "Because I know you wouldn't have come if you knew where we were going…"

Austin leaned over. "And we live in Miami. We can go to the beach anytime. We wanted to explore a different side of the country."

"Yeah," Dez joined in. "We tried to tell you, but you weren't listening to any of us."

Trish groaned. "Why are we going on some stupid camping trip? This is our 'big' vacation? Why couldn't we have done something we _all_ like, like going to Hawaii or going shopping in Europe?"

Ally shook her head and instead of answering, she got out of the car and slammed the door, walking off into the woods.

"What's her problem?" Dez mumbled.

Austin narrowed his eyes and glared at them both. "Guys, do you realize that this time is the last time that we are all going to be together? We are all going our separate directions next month… and none of us know when we will have time like this again. This was so important to Ally… This was supposed to be special for all of us, but this whole time has been nothing but fighting and complaining… Maybe we shouldn't have gone on this trip at all…" He also climbed out of the car and ran off to find Ally.

Trish and Dez sat back in their seats, feeling guilt overwhelm them.

"Wow…" Dez said. "I guess I never really realized how important this trip was to them…"

"Yeah…" Trish agreed. "I feel terrible.. I know that I hate camping, but I want to try and make this trip memorable.."

Dez nodded and held out his arms. "Hug it out?"

Trish rolled her eyes but still gave him a quick squeeze. "Alright, moment is over. Let's go find Austin and Ally." She got out and shut the door, not waiting up for Dez.

Dez struggled to get out of the car, because his foot was stuck underneath Trish's reclined seat. "Ahem! A little help!" He called, but Trish was nowhere in sight. He sighed and looked around.

"Alright… Guess I'll stay here then…"

 **To be continued...**

 **This story was inspired by a moonlit walk that I took. I am planning for this to be a four-shot, and I'll upload as soon as I can. BYSF will be uploaded first and should be done by next week. Please review? I wanna hear your thoughts!**

 **-Evelyn**


	2. Chapter 2: Fishing & Foolery

"Ally, wait!" Austin ran and sat next to her on one of the park benches. She held her head in her hands and groaned in frustration. He gave her a concerned look. "Are you okay?"

She sighed and looked up at him. "I don't know.. I just wanted this trip to be something special for all of us, but instead it seems like it's been driving us apart."

"We don't know that." He replied. "The trip hasn't even started yet. Think on the bright side," He started counting on his fingers. "First of all, it is morning and we just got here, so we made good timing and we'll be able to do all the stuff we want. Second, it's supposed to be a full moon and we get to sleep under the stars. And fourth of all-"

She chuckled as they got up and started walking back towards the car. "I think you mean third of all."

"Oh. Oops. Well, you get my point. We are all here together to enjoy this trip. So let's enjoy it together."

She smiled. "You're right. I guess I was just so frustrated that I forgot to see what was right in front of me." Right at that moment, she turned away from Austin and ran smack dab into a tree. "Oof!"

He caught her from falling back. "So much for not seeing what's right in front of you." He laughed at the irony as she rubbed her sore head.

She glared up at him, even though her glares weren't the least bit intimidating. "Very funny."

He bit his lip to stop from laughing. "I'm sorry," He leaned down to place a lingering kiss on her forehead. "Better?"

She smiled and looked into his eyes. "Yes, much better." She found herself leaning in as he did the same.

"Austin! Ally!" Trish ran over and paused as she caught them in the middle of their moment. "Is now really the time for that?"

"Well, I guess not." Ally mumbled sarcastically. "Look, Trish. I'm really sorry for snapping and getting angry. And I'm sorry for not telling you. I just wanted us to have a great time and to explore nature. I wanted to enjoy the beauty of the Earth instead of worrying about materialistic things."

Trish nodded. "I understand. I'm sorry too, for being selfish. I want us all to be together too. And it's not about where you are. It's who you're with." She leaned in and hugged Ally tightly. Ally hugged back and Austin joined in, hugging both of them.

He pulled away. "Hey. Where's Dez?"

 **x.x**

"Ninety-three bottles of rootbeer on the wall. Take one down, pass it around, ninety-four-"

"Dez!"

"Ahh!"

Dez paused from his singing to see his best friend's face pressed against the window, causing him to shriek. "Geez, Austin. Don't do that!"

"Sorry." Austin said from outside the window. "I just wanted to help. I have the keys." He turned towards the lock to unlock them and climbed in through the front. He looked the see the situation. "Wow Dez, you're really wedged in there."

"I know. Trish reclined her seat and my feet were resting underneath. How am I going to get out of here?"

Austin thought to himself for a moment before his face lit up. "How about this, take my hands and I'll pull you out!"

"Great idea!" He grabbed Austin's hands as Austin opened the door to tug on Dez, but he wouldn't move.

"Okay. Maybe I'll get a better grip on you from out of the window." Austin leaned over to roll down the window and he climbed out. "Okay Dez. Lean out of the window as much as you can."

Dez used his hands to push his upper body out of the window. Austin wrapped his arms around his torso and pulled to set Dez free.

"Ow ow ow…" Dez mumbled. "Okay, we should probably call for help."

Austin nodded and looked around. There were no other cars in sight and the only sounds were from the birds flying overhead. He turned to Dez in frustration. "Who are we going to call?"

Dez gasped. "Ghostbusters!"

Austin rolled his eyes as Ally and Trish walked over.

"Are you seriously still stuck, you doof?"

Dez narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, no thanks to you. The least you can do is help me out of here."

Trish groaned. "Fine." She walked over and opened the door on Dez's side, at the same time, Ally moved the front seat up, letting Dez's leg free.

Austin's face turned slightly red in embarrassment. "Oh…" He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "I guess I didn't think of that…"

 **x.x**

"How much longer…" Trish whined. "I'm wearing flip-flops and I'm getting mud on my pedicure.."

"Yeah?" Dez said. "Well I'm wearing clogs, and they are two sizes too big." He sighed and looked down at the Dutch wooden clogs. Indeed, they were massive and kept falling off of his feet.

"But I only wore these shoes because I thought we were going to the beach. Now, do _you_ have a good reason for wearing those shoes?" Trish fired back.

"As a matter of fact, I do." Dez looked down and looked right into her eyes. "They are the only shoes that match my outfit." Dez was still wearing his old boy scout uniform, and the clogs did match.

"Since when do you care about matching clothes? Besides, you knew we were hiking. You knew better than to wear some pair of shoes from Denmark."

"Actually," Ally piped in. "Wooden clogs were originally from Holland and New Amster-"

"No one cares." Dez said. "This looks like a good place to stop."

They hiked a good ways up the mountain. Dez pointed out a campsite with a picnic table and a grill. It also had a lush grassy area and an established bonfire pit with wooden logs around in for seating.

"This is a really nice spot Dez." Austin complimented. "I really like the view." He looked up, where the tree canopy opened and let in the sunshine. It would be a beautiful place to watch the stars.

Ally paused. "And I hear water!" She ran ahead. "There's a beautiful creek that leds into a river! We could go swimming!" She called up ahead.

Trish cringed. "Ew, no way. We don't know what's in that water. I'm not going in there."

Ally walked back. "Trish, this is the best place to go swimming. The water is clear, clean, and it's naturally from the water that we drink is probably dirtier."

"But we're in the mountains." Trish pointed out. "There could be wild animals anywhere, like alligators."

"Or sharks!" Dez exclaimed.

Austin turned to his best friend. "Dez we swim in the ocean back in Miami.. We have more chance of running into a shark there then we do here.."

"Let's just set up camp and we'll figure out what to do afterwards." Ally decided and everyone nodded. Trish sat down at the picnic table and fanned herself as Austin and Ally started pulling out the tents and reading from the instruction manual.

Dez's phone rang and he answered. "Hello! Babe!" He mouthed "it's Carrie", and Trish rolled her eyes.

The truth was, Trish did like Dez, quite a lot. But she knew she would never hear the end of it if he knew. Dez, besides Austin, was the only guy who has stuck with her since the beginning. It did hurt that Dez found Carrie, but she knew that she had to move on.

Dez walked off to get some privacy, while Trish sat and tried to keep her mind off of things by playing games on her phone. Austin and Ally had already finished setting up the first tent.

"Woo!" She high fived her boyfriend. "We make a good team." She tripped over a peg and quickly caught herself.

Austin smiled at his girlfriend's quirkiness. "Yes we do."

Once they got the other tent set up, they laid out their sleeping bags and pillows. Ally checked to make sure that they had everything, and Austin sat down next to Trish, trying to guess the answers as they played Trivia on her phone.

Dez came back soon after, with sulk in his step and sorrow in his eyes. "Hey guys.."

"Hey Dez.." Ally walked over. "Are you okay?"

Dez nodded. "Yeah, just probably got bug spray in my eye…" His voice sounded thick. "Or bugs…Can we start doing something?"

"Of course." She called over Trish and Austin, who were too busy playing games to notice that Dez was upset. He disguised it with a smile, and only Ally knew that something was up. "So, I have a list of things we can do."

"It doesn't include cloud watching right?" Trish asked. "Because I'm not doing that."

"Me either." Dez commented.

Ally looked at Austin, who was too scared to go against Ally. "What else is on there?"

"Hiking." She started off.

"We just did that for like two hours." Trish said.

"Okay, marshmallow roasting?"

"It's not even dark out yet."

"Okay, how about swimming?"

"No!" Trish exclaimed. "I don't care how clean the water is, I'm not getting my hair wet."

Ally sighed in frustration. "Fine, how about…" She scanned the list. "Fishing?"

Austin and Dez nodded.

Trish thought for a second. "Eh, okay. Fishing doesn't sound so bad."

 **x.x**

"Wait, we're actually fishing?!"

Ally pulled three rowboats into the river bank. "Yeah.. what did you think we were doing?"

"I don't know, playing Go Fish?" She suggested.

Dez laughed and pointed at her. "You thought we were playing a board game? That's so stupid.."

Trish gave him a death glare. "Go Fish is a card game _genius_ ," She walked towards him with venom in her words. "So Go Fish!" She pushed Dez backwards off of the dock and he landed in the water with a splash.

"Trish!" Ally ran over. "That was dangerous! You can't just dunk him in the water!"

Dez stood up in the shallow river and shook his hair. "It's okay. She'll never know what's coming…"

Trish turned to the redhead, "What are you talking about you- AHH!" She was unable to finish as Dez grabbed her hand and pulled her in the water with him. She surfaced, sputtering and in rage.

"I can't believe you did that!" She screeched and headed towards the bank, but he kept a strong grip on her hand and pulled her back, making her turn around in surprise. His face looked sincere and he donned a small smile. His hand tightly gripped hers and his hair stuck to his forehead. She suddenly forgot why she was mad.

Ally smiled and squealed to herself, because after all she loved love. "Awe, I'm so glad that you guys are getting along!"

Trish nervously chuckled. "Yup, the things I do for you Ally…" She let go of Dez's hand and began walking out of the water.

Dez glanced at his hand with a slight frown and shook it off, as Austin came back from the campsite, wearing a fishing vest and a floppy hat. He carried four fishing poles and other equipment with him.

"Who's ready to fish?" He asked and smiled, putting the equipment in each rowboat.

"Wait…" Trish paused, looking at the three rowboats. "Why are there only three?"

"The campgrounds are a natural conservatory area. The park let's us be responsible for our own actions, but they provide things like grills and rowboats. The limit for a party of six or smaller is three rowboats." Ally explained.

They all looked at her with confused expressions.

"How do you know all that?" Dez asked.

Ally walked over to the wooden stand with maps and rules for the campgrounds printed on both sides. "It's right here. When camping, or in any other situation, it's important to thoroughly be aware of your surroundings and the rules of the establishment. Furthermore-"

"Whatever." Trish said. "You and Austin can share a boat. I want my space. If I have to be out here on the water all day, I'd rather work on my tan."

"Suit yourself." Austin said as Trish got in and he pushed her out to the large pond that the river flowed into. She leaned back on the wooden bench and relaxed her head on the large feather down pillow that she brought. She flipped down her sunglasses and sighed in contentment, getting comfortable.

Austin also pushed Dez's boat into the pond. Dez wore a similar fishing hat and discarded his wooden clogs. Ally said they could get ruined in the water but he was curious to see if they would float. He pulled out a container of bait from his backpack.

Austin then got into the last rowboat with Ally and pushed their way into the river with the oar. Once they were all settled, they began to attach the bait to the hooks and throw the lines into the depths of the pond. Trish still relaxed on the boat, lightly snoring.

Dez sighed and waited, holding onto the fishing pole. "This is very relaxing."

Austin looked around as Ally fastened her lifejacket. "Ally, why are you wearing a lifejacket, the water is like waist deep."

She gave him a pointed look. "Waist deep for you, neck deep for me. I don't want to risk it." She continued fastening the latches.

Austin shook his head, deciding not to argue with her ridiculously overprotective ways. "Hey Dez, didn't we have a whole bucket of bait?" He looked again in the boat, but didn't spot it.

"Yeah, it should be in the boat." He held up his own container. "I brought my own in case I found any starving birds."

Trish yawned and didn't not open her eyes from behind her sunglasses. "Will you doofs stop bickering? I'm trying to relax." She commented and stretched out to get more comfortable, only she didn't see the bucket of bait that was beside her feet. And she ended up kicking in over, causing the slimy squirming worms to land on her legs, but she was so focused on relaxing that she didn't even notice.

In fact only Austin and Ally noticed. They exchanged nervous glances as the worms crawled on Trish, but they were too far away to be able to help her.

"Um, Trish?" Ally called out nervously.

"Shush Ally, we'll talk after my nap." She replied and paused. "And Dez, if that's you tickling my foot, I highly recommend you stop before you don't have a hand." She snapped.

Dez looked back at her, his boat floated toward the moss while she was floating in the middle of the pond. "What are you talking about? I'm not even anywhere near you."

"Huh?" She raised up her sunglasses and squinted at him. "Then what is that.." She looked down and saw many worms crawling across her legs and she screamed at the top of her lungs, scaring away all the birds in the woods and causing them to fly away. "GET THEM OFF!" She shrieked and jumped out of the boat and trudged through the water, trying to get rid of all the worms.

"Ohhh…" Dez said. "Austin, I found the bait!"

Austin rolled his eyes. "Thanks buddy, I got that."

Once Trish had shook off her legs and triple checked to make sure nothing was on her, she angrily trudged out of the water. "I'll be back. I'm heading back to camp to clean up." She muttered and walked off.

Ally's face fell in disappointment. She thought this would be a fun activity that they would all enjoy, but she knew it would be hard now to get Trish to enjoy anything on this trip.

She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn't notice Austin rubbing her back soothingly until he whispered in her ear. "She'll be okay. Just give her time to cool down."

Ally nodded but couldn't help feeling bad. "Let's just continue fishing." She suggested.

"Good idea." Austin replied as he applied the worm to his hook and Ally did the same. They threw out their lines a good distance away from each other, so they wouldn't tangle.

They all sat there for a good seven minutes, waiting for any action to come, but the waters were still, and so were their fishing poles. After a while, Austin felt a tug on his line, causing him to sit up in alert.

"I think I got one!" He felt the tug again.

At the same time, Dez, who was a few meters away from Austin and Ally, felt a tug on his line again. "Me too! I got one too!" He gave his best friend an excited look from his place by the tall grass and moss.

"Let's reel them in, buddy!" Austin called as he and Dez began vigorously reeling in their lines.

But what they didn't know is that their lines were actually tangled in a midpoint beneath the water, and that they caught the same fish, who was hungry for the worms. And the fish wasn't puny either, in fact, it was the size of both their feet combined and it weighed more than a large puppy.

As Dez and Austin continued reeling, their lines tangled even further, and the fish was caught on their hooks. In an attempt to get free, the large fish dived and tried to swim away. This, along with the tangled lines, caused Dez and Austin's boats to draw close together, until eventually, their boats bumped. The crash resulting in the interfering boats, caused Ally to look up in alarm.

"Woah, Dez why are you so close? Is everything okay?" She looked over at Dez with wide eyes.

Dez hardly even noticed, concentrating on reeling in the giant fish. His face turned red and he struggled to breath as he used his energy to reel in the fish. "Man, this guy must be huge!"

Austin panted and began to sweat. "No kidding, there must be a current or something pulling the boats together.."

After three minutes of trying to flee, the fish finally gave up, letting Dez and Austin reel it in.

"I think I got mine!"

"Mine too!"

They both leaned in close, trying to get a better grip, but Dez's boat bumped into Austin's once again, causing both boys to collide heads and fall over into the water.

"Austin!" Ally screamed as the boat rocked violently. As she saw him go over, she tried to grab his leg to save him, but she was very small and could not pull him over. As he fell over, his leg ended up dragging her with as well, causing all three of them to be dunked in the pond.

Dez and Austin resurfaced quickly, both drenched head to toe and gasping for air in shock at what just happened. Even though Ally was dragged along with, she stayed above the surface because of her life jacket, even though she was soaked from the huge splash that the two boys caused.

She sighed. "And this is why we wear life jackets."

 **x.x**

They returned to camp soon after, with nothing but their supplies and wet clothes. Trish, who cleaned up and got dry, laughed hysterically at them.

"I guess you guys decided to go swimming after all!" She laughed and slapped her leg.

Ally couldn't help but join her. "I know, it didn't go at all like planned. But we brought some hot dogs and chips. We should start up the grill and make ourselves some dinner."

They all agreed and Austin lit the grill and Ally began preparing plates with fresh fruit and potato salad that she kept in the ice cooler. It was just starting to get dark out, and from above the trees, the stars began to sparkle.

Dez sat on one of the logs, staring up at the sky in silence. Ally glanced at him sympathetically while Austin and Trish exchanged confused glances. Soon, the hot dogs were grilled and ready to eat, and everyone gathered around the campfire and started to eat and chat.

They talked about memories and their future endeavors. They talked about their pasts and shared funny stories, causing laughter and smile amongst their faces, even Dez, who was surprisingly solemn.

Once they finished eating, the flames of the campfire were the only source of light that they had, well, other than the nearly full moon and the stars that illuminated the Carolina skies above them. Ally found herself in Austin's embrace as they snuggled closer. She sat in his lap as they cuddled in a fluffy blanket, looking at the stars. She was still worried about the future and she could tell that he was too. His usual bright smile was replaced by a look of observation. His eyes were cloudy as he thoroughly examined the stars. She could tell that something that bothering his mind too. She didn't want him to spend the trip worrying, so she leaned in and kissed his lips softly. He looked over and grinned, leaning in to capture her lips again. They became so entranced by each other as they continued their make out session, that they didn't notice Dez's weird stares or Trish's sounds of disgust.

"Ew." She mumbled. "I can't take anymore of this.." She stood up and walked away from the couple, whose lips never left each others. "C'mon Dez. Let's give them their space."

"Okay." Dez gave them one last look. It seemed almost sad, as if he couldn't bear to see their happiness for each other. "Yeah let's go." He grabbed his backpack and they walked towards the main trail, not bothering to read the sign beside them.

 **Beware: Stay on the main trail at all times. Never stray alone into the woods.**

 **x.x**

 **Dun dun dun! I'm sorry it's been so long. I was having writer's block, so shout out to my sister for helping me with the fishing scene! I know I promised "By Your Side Forever" would be uploaded. I lost the document and I had to rewrite it. Also, I'm putting lots of fluff and detail into it, so it'll be worth the wait. Thank you for all the support! Your reviews really help motivate me to continue. Dez and Carrie are taking a small break in here. Even though I'm trying to stay as true to the series as possible, I wanted to write Trez in this story because I value their friendship and I want to see it progress and see what the series didn't show us.**

 **Also, for the next chapter, I want to take suggestions. What do you guys want to see happen on this trip? Is there any scene you would like me to write or that you'd like to see happen? Please please review and let me know!**

 **-Evelyn**


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